More vacation time..... An Englishman's take on the American work ethic

Read this article if you get a chance.

Because I miss last season of Project Runway...

Here's Project Runway "The Musical"... Hilarous. It includes the "Andre song." At least the crazies from last season were amusing.

I went to the Red Sox game last night. Boston beat KC 5-4. I was expecting a blowout. We played supposedly the worst team in the league..... it ended up being quite close. However, the highlights of the evening off-set the frustrating first 5 innings and the gross heat.

Will Ferrell threw out the first pitch in full uniform! He even ran in from the bull pen and threw the pitch out a la Luis Tiant. Sidenote: Meatloaf threw out a pitch before Will Ferrell..... Random. Thankfully, Meatloaf was not in uniform


Ortiz stole his first base of the season, literally and figuratively. I guess he was proud of himself.

South Station Tower

The new South Station in 10 years: Hopefully in ten years I will not be taking the bus when I go to NYC. However, this made me happy:
Some $40 million will be spent on transportation improvements that will almost double the size of the bus terminal. Subway, commuter rail, and bus areas will be more directly connected to each other, juxtaposed with separate spaces and entrances for the condos, hotel, offices, and parking. (boston.com)
Read about the project.

Revive

Annoying coworker #1: Where are you going?
Me: To my car to get my Vitamin Water. I forgot it.....
Annoying coworker #1: What are you getting?
Me: Vitamin Water
Annoying coworker#1: What's Vitamin Water?
Me: Water with Vitamins. Be right back. *SMILE*

(I go get vitamin water ... run into annoying coworker #1 and #2 while returning to office)

Annoying coworker #1: Can I see that? ( pointing to bottle)
Me: Sure. Here.
Annoying coworker #1: You weren't lying. It really is water with vitamins.
Me: Yup.
Annoying coworker#2: Can I see it too???
Me: Go for it.
Annoying coworker#2: Oops!! heh heh heh *Starts to shake bottle of Revive like crazy, and forcefully throws bottle to the ground*
Me: Thanks. GRRRRRR.

I am not feeling revived.

Dog Training Techniques

The luxury of refusing business.

When I was in college, I was fortunate enough to spend one of my spring breaks in France and Belgium. I studied French in high school and even in college during my freshman year. However, my French is absolutely atrocious. That short week, I annoyed my friends that did speak French quite well by incessantly repeating: "je vais a la plage" (I go to the beach).

Anyways, yesterday I read on Boston.com that Geno's Steaks in Philadelphia has posted a sign stating they will only serve individuals who speak English. I started to remember the few times I have been out of this country in a foreign speaking environment. On my trip to France and Belgium, and on my trips to Italy and Switzerland, my money was never refused...

I wonder how the US would react if all the businesses in Europe that serve "ignorant" American tourists, simply refused to serve us? I wonder what France's reputation would be then?? Geno's already lists French fries as "Freedom Fries".

Read the article on Boston.com: Philadelphia serves bias warning to eatery

Boston Herald plagiarizes an article about plagiarism.

Don't people realize that Oprah denounced plagiarism? You can't get away with this stuff anymore....

New England's favorite smut rag, the Boston Herald, borrowed a bit too much from Editor & Publisher's article about Vanity Fair's article about plagiarism. (Primarily about Da Vinci Code's author Dan Brown). That's alot of "abouts".

Rachel Sklar from Huffington Post's Eat the Press wrote an article about the debacle. Read it!

You all may not care about this.. but because of my job I am forced to look at the Herald at least 3 times per week. The headlines always piss me off, so this was great.

Kathy Griffin and Ann Coulter

Kathy Griffin and Ann Coulter in one post? Huh? No worries, there is a connection....

So Ann Coulter was her usual eloquent self when she appeared on The Today Show this week to promote her latest publication, Godless: The Church of Liberalism. By the end of her interview with Matt Lauer, Ms. Coulter's panties were clearly in a bunch.

Here's the entertaining yet disturbing dialogue:(transcript from thinkprogress.org)

LAUER: Do you believe everything in the book or do you put some things in there just to cater to your base?

ANN: No, of course I believe everything.

LAUER: On the 9-11 widows, an in particular a group that had been critical of the administration: “These self-obsessed women seem genuinely unaware that 9-11 was an attack on our nation and acted like as if the terrorist attack only happened to them. They believe the entire country was required to marinate in their exquisite personal agony. Apparently, denouncing bush was part of the closure process.” And this part is the part I really need to talk to you about: “These broads are millionaires, lionized on TV and in articles about them, reveling in their status as celebrities and stalked by griefparrazies. I have never seen people enjoying their husband’s death so much.” Because they dare to speak out?

COULTER: To speak out using the fact they are widows. This is the left’s doctrine of infallibility. If they have a point to make about the 9-11 commission, about how to fight the war on terrorism, how about sending in somebody we are allowed to respond to. No. No. No. We have to respond to someone who had a family member die. Because then if we respond, oh you are questioning their authenticity.

LAUER: So grieve but grieve quietly?

COULTER: No, the story is an attack on the nation. That requires a foreign policy response.

LAUER: By the way, they also criticized the Clinton administration.

COULTER: Not the ones I am talking about. No, no, no.

LAUER: Yeah they have.

COULTER: Oh no, no, no, no, no. They were cutting commercials for Kerry. They were using their grief to make a political point while preventing anyone from responding.

LAUER: So if you lose a husband, you no longer have the right to have a political point of view?

COULTER: No, but don’t use the fact that you lost a husband as the basis for being able to talk about, while preventing people from responding. Let Matt Lauer make the point. Let Bill Clinton make the point. Don’t put up someone I am not allowed to respond to without questioning the authenticity of their grief.

LAUER: Well apparently you are allowed to respond to them.

COULTER: Yeah, I did.

LAUER: So, in other words.

COULTER: That is the point of liberal infallibility. Of putting up Cindy Sheehan, of putting out these widows, of putting out Joe Wilson. No, no, no. You can’t respond. It’s their doctrine of infallibility. Have someone else make the argument then.

LAUER: What I’m saying is I don’t think they have ever told you, you can’t respond.

COULTER: Look, you are getting testy with me.

LAUER: No. I think it’s a dramatic statement. “These broads are millionaires stalked by stalked by grief-parazzies”? “I have never seen people enjoying their husband’s deaths so much”?

COULTER: Yes, they are all over the news.

LAUER: The book is called “Godless: The Church of Liberalism.” Ann Coulter, always fun to have you here.

Lauer seems a bit sassier than usual with Katie gone. I like it.

Ok so the K Griffin tie-in.... Kathy Griffin also appeared on the today show this week and met with Al Roker: (This is a 'rough' transcript from crooksandliars.com)

Kathy: I'd like to go after Ann Coulter, I saw that nut-bag on the show earlier. What's she doing wearing a cocktail dress at seven in the morning. She got home from the party last night. Doesn't she just make stuff up Al? Who fact checks? You can't just let Ann Coulter...

I think she is hilarious to begin with.... but she totally had me a nut-bag. Watch the video clip. Kathy makes a good point. What criteria does Ann Coulter meet to be accepted by networks as an actual journalist/pundit instead of a cruel lunatic?

You are cordially invited...

I received in the mail the other day an invitation to the President's Dinner on June 19th. For the bargain price of $2500, I have the opportunity to dine with the leader of the free world.

HA HA HA! very funny. Whoever put me on the mailing list for the Republican Party is very clever.. and you should be proud. BUT!! I will find out who you are!! Just you wait.. You will be receiving mail from Meatloaf's or Yanni's fanclub when you least expect it....

The invite included a letter from two of my most favorite people, Majority Leader Frist and Speaker Hasert. Here are some of my favorite statements:

• We'll counteract the "mainstream" media that have been force-feeding the American public with liberal propaganda.
• We will expose the Democratic Party as nothing more than an angry group of left-wing demagogues with no ideas, no vision and no principles.
• Those far-left "527" groups that came out of nowhere in 2004 are back, raising money at an incredible rate from the usual suspects- big labor bosses, Hollywood elistists, and billionaire foreign investor George Soros. (Reminiscent of Team America: World Police)
• There's no way we're going to allow this group of "do-nothing Democrats" and their allies in the liberal media to keep us on our heels all the way through the fall election.
• There's an old saying that goes, "You can judge a man by the company he keeps." ( I actually agree with this statement..)

Missed my chance to own a piece of Arrested Development

Estate Sales LA hosted an auction last weekend of some of the contents of the Bluth household. DOH!!! I was reading a blog by Huffington Post's Maureen Miller and found out about it too late. It's not likely that I would have bid on an item, but I would have liked to have known in advance. I thought you all would be amused by this. I know I'm not the only one who misses this show. Thank god for DVDs.

Friday, May 19 – Sunday, May 21, 2006
2032 Stoner Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90025 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Estate Sales Los Angeles is pleased to announce that it will conduct an exciting prop house sale of the contents of one of Twentieth Century Fox Television's favorite television shows of the past decade "Arrested Development".

Spectacular array of items will include several periods of furniture, magic show accessories and artifacts, interior décor items, art, books, kitchen appliances and kitchen ware, interior/exterior lighting, office furniture, extensive entertainment memorabilia and too much more to itemize.

Don't miss the opportunity to own a piece of this show.

Pictures: Casket used by magician Parking sign for George Bluth Lucille’s Dining Room Chair Milford Academy Sign